Effortless Substitution

I have made a couple of easy substitutions on this little table. 

The Santa pitcher in place of a transferware pitcher. 

 I added live poinsettias which are not expensive.

 In fact I paid .99 cents for this one. 

The breadboard was added in the summer. 

The large book stayed. 

The candles joined the antlers in the terracotta funeral basket.

Oh and I hung the swag of apples and cinnamon from the basket. 

Simple and effortless substitution for a Christmas vignette.

You can see the original configuration in my Adding Natural Elements post.

That has been one of my most viewed posts.

Add Christmas details to what you already have with a few substitutions.

 It's easy.

Linking@A Homespun Christmas Vignettes&Mantels @Kim's

Please note that my Blog Reading List has moved to Pages at the top of the blog. 
I will be changing it into a blog roll as soon as I figure out how to do that. 
I asked for help and a kind and very smart blogger is helping me.
I will be working on getting it up and running. 
And I thought being an RN was stressful.

Happy Christmas

Olive

Shiny Brite Ornaments

I ran across several boxes of Shiny Brite vintage Christmas ornaments this summer. 

It was either at an estate sale or a garage sale.

I cannot remember.

 I do remember the price was less than one dollar for a box. 

Much like the original price.

The boxes contain several different sizes and colors. 

My favorite is the white that almost looks like mercury glass because of it's age.

The white ones and small pinks ended up on the dining table. 

I cannot bear having them on the tree with a 75 pound puppy in the house. 

Truthfully though Shelly has not paid one lick of attention to the tree.

Today, despite having a cold, I ventured out to a few places. 

I had not left the house in three days and was getting a bit stir crazy. 

One of the stops was a thrift store where I dug through an enormous tub of ornaments. 

I found four vintage ornaments. 

It was worth the effort.

Linking@Wow Us Wednesday's

Happy Christmas

Olive

Christmas Hearth

The hearth for Christmas as it stands today.

   Poinsettia's were added with a bottle brush wreath

 from Big Lots (two years ago). 

I placed a green bottle brush tree(from Marshalls)

 into some stacked funeral baskets. 

My hearth is always filled with funeral baskets. 

Freaky yes? 

I picked up the enormous empty frame at a garage sale for almost nothing. 

I may add bling to the deer head (from Goodwill).

 He is under consideration.

My freaky funeral baskets are getting harder and harder to find. 

That's a blessing really because I don't need any more.

CC and I have the Christmas tree decorated too. 

It was wonderful to have her home for a week.

 She drove herself back to her University yesterday without incident.

linking@Christmas Decorating On A Budget

Tweak It Tuesday

Wow Us Wednesday

Happy Christmas

Olive

Wax Ornaments

Wax ornaments made from German molds are incredibly durable. 

Beautiful too.

 They feel like an expensive candle.

  I have had mine for over twenty five years. 

I bought them from a German couple who used antique molds. 

They had the most charming shop in Highlands, North Carolina.

The shop is long since closed but you can search for 

wax ornaments on Etsy and easily find some wonderful ones.

I have larger pieces I bought from that couple at our old house. 

I loved them then and I love them now.

Linking@A Favorite Thing

I am off to trim shrubs because my darling Joe

 should not be doing that alone. 

I will be back to visit with all of you tonight.

joy and peace

Olive

Cornbread

Cornbread for cornbread dressing. 

I have not made dressing in years and am taking my time doing it this year.

 I did learn the trick for cooking cornbread in cast iron pans.

  Hot pan and cold batter.

I heat the pan in the oven with oil in it for nine minutes at 450 degrees.

 I never leave the kitchen when I do this. 

This makes the cornbread crispy and it does not stick.

This image above is the batter hitting the hot cast iron. 

Celery and onion are the flavor base for the dressing. 

I will bake it in the morning.

Needless to say we are not counting fat grams on Thanksgiving. 

Joe picked up our smoked turkey a few minutes ago.

 We bought one and gave one away.

CC made this coffee, vanilla wafer, and pudding dessert 

while I fiddled with cornbread. 

This Thanksgiving is particularly bittersweet because 

she will be a student in Korea next year.

Happy Thanksgiving to all my American friends.

I am also thankful for all my European and Canadian friends.

joy and peace

Olive

Vintage Santa Mugs

A vintage Santa with new stag mugs. 

The patina of the Santa mug is hard for me to resist.
I like that crazing.

Notice how small he is compared to the stag mugs.

This Santa is winking at us. 

I have been slowing pulling Christmas dishes out of the cabinets. 

Nothing is finished but I shall give you a sneak peak of the buffet. 

It's too linear.

I need to shake it up.

I am searching for a china cabinet or Welch cupboard for this space.
I would like to display my china in it the way many of you do.

Linking@Tweak It Tuesday
Table Top Tuesday
Wow Us Wednesday

joy and peace

Olive

Cozy

I am getting cozy with old wool blankets.  

Frankly this weekend has been exhausting. 

CC, our daughter, finally made it home from college Friday night. 

She was lost, rescued by her aunt, and many hours late. 

It was her first time driving that two hundred miles from the mountains. 

Thank you all for your encouraging comments on Friday.

Then on Saturday we saw that vampire movie of course. 

Had lunch and went to Costco with nine thousand other shoppers. 

Right when I went to sleep last night CC woke me up. 

She's home for sure.

I would not trade her for a band of flying monkeys.

Happy Sunday

Olive

Pastel Trays

Pastels today my friends. 

Because they are soothing.

Because I am coaxing a college student home via the telephone.

 CC has never driven alone from college before.

 I am anxious.

 She is anxious.

She has a GPS and it has already led her astray. 

She might end up in Alabama if I leave her to it.

I picked up these three pastel trays this morning 

and styled them on the island. 

They were one dollar each at an estate sale by the river. 

The china is American Country by Nikko.

Thank you for helping me stay busy today. 

I require distractions.

 I could clean but where is the fun in that?

happy Friday

Olive

Organized?

My only foray into Christmas decorating is this bowl of baseballs in our den. 

I had to ask Joe what kind of balls they were because I am 

not a sports fan but I love their graphic beauty. 

Okay laugh at me.

I went to the grocery store yesterday afternoon and it was CRAZY. 

Everyone and their grandma was in there buying turkeys and what not. 

Of course I forgot a few items and must go back.

 Please pinch me.  

Thanksgiving is one week from today and I have got to get busy. 

I have not cooked the whole menu in years.

Tell me you are more organized than I am.

joy and peace

Olive

Chalkboard Mirror

This is a problem wall in a high traffic area. 

The chalkboard cut out mirror solves that problem. 

It does not stick out from the wall and we don't run into it.

 See that green chest on the right? 

We run into it all the time and it has got to go.

Now we can write messages to each other or write menus on our new chalkboard. 

I ordered it from Groupon. 

I must stay away from there.

♦♦♦

In Olive Out news we cut down two trees yesterday. 

By we I mean Joe and his brother cut the trees and Sue and I went shopping. Today marks a year that I have been visiting the Cancer Center at the University I retired from. I have not shared that with you before. They were concerned about some precancerous cells. The good news is that I do not have cancer and they do not want to see me again until next year. Last fall was a rocky time. We are thankful I am healthy and well.  And as the mirror says CC is coming home this week. 

Yay.

joy and peace

Olive

Fringed Vintage Tablecloths

 Three fringed tablecloths found me.

I placed them on our chippy patio table to enjoy the 

last of our flowers and the fallen leaves.

The nearly dead pansies are looking pretty good now.

This darker aqua tablecloth has dogwood blossoms which is 

appropriate with the fallen dogwood leaves.

Both the aqua tablecloths blend with my Mikasa Garden Harvest 

dishes and my set of vintage Ballerina dishes.

This sweet Christmas tablecloth, with fringe, is the third one to find me. 

I do suggest you place fringed tablecloths in the dryer 

for a few minutes to soften the fringe. 

I love to iron but ironing fringe is difficult my darlings. 

The platter is CC's great grandmother's.

linking@Tweak It Tuesday

Wow Us Wednesday's

Joy and Peace

Olive

Thrifty Finds

I was not enthusiastic about going thrift shopping this morning. 

Five thirty AM when the temperature is in the mid thirties is not good for me. 

I warmed up to it when Joe and I found the mirror and grate. 

The grate may help me achieve my secret goal of becoming 

the crazy lady with too many yard ornaments.

I always pick up big empty frames for a song.

This Limoges tureen is from Thursdays estate sale. 

It has a crack so was cheaply priced.

 I see green ornaments in it for Christmas.

I had never seen one of these before. 

The paper in her skirt explains that each hole is for a cloth napkin. 

I will not be doing that.

A Thomasville solid wood etarge. 

We may sell it. Or not. 

It is heavy and in great shape.

What have you found thrifting lately that makes you smile?

happy hunting

Olive